Exfoliative Dermatitis Support Group

Do any of you have thickened palms and soles? Mine get severe during a flare. It builds up until my soles and palm are hard and slick (thicker than wearing rubber gloves). It affects my being able to feel and it is impossible to test my blood sugar from a finger. I can't walk without shoes or I'll slide and fall. After awhile, it begins to crack. Where it breaks apart, the thickened skin gets sharp and hard and cuts into my tender flesh beneath. Twice a day, I trim off the edges as they loosen, to prevent being cut. As days pass, finally it is all peeled off and I have fresh skin on my feet that looks normal, except for the redness.

If you have this problem, you might want to read the article on the site below. The article is found about 3/4 of the way down the long, long page. It describes me to a T! I am so surprised to read that PRP is a type of Exfoliative Dermatitis. At last I think I know exactly what is wrong with me. Now if only a cure could be found for all of us.

http://www.prp-support.org/PRP_bibliography_2007.pdf

The picture is of my foot yesterday, after a week of trimming a lot of the thickened skin away. Please let me know if you have this, and what you do for it.

Thanks for the article, Violet. I read it all (except all the names). Interesting. I get thickened skin like that sometimes on my soles and palms but not to the degree that you have and mine peels off within a few days. Yours is REALLY thick. So I don't think I have that PRP. I've been having a lot of uncomfortable days. Bearable, but uncomfortable. In the article, they described ED as a symptom of several different skin disorders. I still tend toward eczema, mostly.

Mine wasn't that thick in the beginning. At first it was just peeling skin, and with time, it became thicker and harder to control. A person who has PRP told me that he rubs Bag Balm on his feet at night, then covers them loosely with plastic bags. that keeps the skin soft. He uses Vaseline and cotton gloves for the hands. I'm going to try it.

My doctor says I have Eczemous Erythroderma, so Eczema seems to enter into it for me as well. It will be interesting to see what he has to say about PRP.